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By Brendan Pierson
NEW YORK (Reuters) – The trial of Mexican drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, who is scheduled to be extradited, is due to open Monday in federal court in Brooklyn, where he faces charges of smuggling. drug and conspiracy.
Prosecutors, defense lawyers and US District Judge Brian Cogan will start by choosing jurors for what should be a four-month trial. As a sign of the degree of attention paid to the case and the notoriety of the accused, the jury will remain anonymous.
Guzman, 61, formerly headed the Sinaloa cartel, which owes its name to its base in the state of Sinaloa, Mexico. US authorities have described the group as one of the most powerful drug trafficking organizations in the world.
The nickname Guzman, which refers to a height of 1.67 meters, is often translated into English as "Shorty".
On January 19, 2017, he was extradited from Mexico to the United States after escaping twice from Mexican jails.
A Mexican official then told Reuters that the move was a sign of goodwill towards the new US President Donald Trump, which was inaugurated the next day, although Alberto Elias Beltran, Mexico's Deputy Attorney General for International Affairs, denied any connection.
US prosecutors have said that at the head of the Sinaloa cartel since 2003, Guzman had spearheaded the movement of several tons of narcotics shipments, including heroin, cocaine, marijuana and methamphetamine, to across borders and in the United States. If he is found guilty, Guzman risks life imprisonment.
According to documents filed by the court, prosecution witnesses will include former Sinaloa cartel members and other persons involved in the drug trade who are now cooperating with the United States government. Prosecutors have so far avoided naming witnesses, saying it would put them in danger. Some are supposed to testify under pseudonyms.
Although the charges in this case all involve drug trafficking, prosecutors should also present evidence that Guzman allegedly participated in multiple murder plots during his career, including in wars with rival cartels. .
Guzman's lawyers have so far given little clue to their planned defense. Eduardo Balarezo, one of the lawyers, said in court that he would try to prove that Guzman was only a "lieutenant" acting under the direction of others.
The Mexican authorities captured Guzman and a partner in January 2016, fleeing a raid on a house where he lived in northwestern Mexico.
A few months earlier, Guzman had granted an interview to American actor Sean Penn for Rolling Stone magazine, in which he stated: "I am providing more heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana than anyone else in the world".
(Report by Brendan Pierson in New York, edited by Anthony Lin and Susan Thomas)
